WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — For the first time in years, the federal government wasn't in attendance for the annual Governor's Hurricane Conference.
Federal agencies, like the National Weather Service and FEMA, usually attend the week-long conference each year ahead of hurricane season.
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The lack of attendance led to several trainings/classes being canceled at the conference, which is advertised as the premier destination for education before hurricane season starts on June 1.
On the conference's website, it's billed as the "nation's largest and best-attended conference focusing on hurricane planning, preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation."
A spokesperson for the National Weather Service said in an email that the lack of attendance was due to "travel restrictions". They said it was conducting training at the National Hurricane Center and online.
"We remain committed to informing state and local officials about changes to the NHC products for the 2025 hurricane season," a spokesperson wrote to WPTV.
John Czernis, who works with a company called The Integrity Group that helps local governments get funding from the federal government to respond to natural disasters like hurricanes, said he planned on going to those sessions.
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Czernis said those classes are important to understand the changes made to laws, interpretations and processes to get the money.
"If we mess it up, then the opportunity is there for them [local governments] to lose funding," he said. "So, we want to stay on top of things."
FEMA had not responded to WPTV's request for comment by publication Wednesday afternoon.
Recent staffing reductions at the National Weather Service have raised concerns about the accuracy and timeliness of critical weather warnings this hurricane season.
